Liberty Matters News Service
July 19, 2001
Immediately after
Clinton created the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in Utah,
in the 1996 presidential campaign, several counties filed suit claiming
the action to close 1.7 million acres to development/use, was illegal.
Several conservation groups figured that the Bush Administration
would not defend the designation and requested permission to intervene
on behalf of the government. U.S.
District Judge Dee Benson denied the application because she said the
suit was about whether Clinton’s actions were legal, not about
environmental protection. The
groups appealed to the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals
which agreed that the greens have an interest in the case and ordered
the district court to grant their application to intervene.
In the mean time, Rep. Mike Simpson, R-ID, has offered
legislation requiring the president to first consult with a state’s
governor and congressional delegation before any monument of 50,000
acres or more could be created. The
bill also requires Congress to ratify any monument designation within
two years. Why 50,000
acres? It should be if even
one is designated.
White House supports
bill limiting Antiquities Act
Court Allows
Environment Groups To Take Over For Feds
NATIONAL
MONUMENTS: Grand Staircase lawsuit opened to environmental, tourism groups
Cabinet
Status for EPA
Rep.
Sherwood Boehlert, moderate New York Republican has introduced
legislation to elevate the Environmental Protection Agency to cabinet
level. Boehlert believes
chances are good for passage because of the make-up of Congress and
Bush’s stated approval of such a move.
“EPA’s mission is too critical for the agency not to be an
official part of the Cabinet,” he said.
Several attempts have been made to move the agency to Cabinet
level, but Republicans have successfully derailed the efforts.
The 1994 endeavor lost after Republicans attached language
requiring the agency to conduct cost-benefit analysis for all proposed
regulations. G.W.’s father tried to get legislation approved before
Earth Day in 1990, to no avail and now Bush, the younger, sees an
opportunity to make points with so-called moderate Republicans and to
shore up his tarnished environmental image with the green crowd.
“The president thinks it should be a matter of law,” said
White House spokesman, Ari Fleischer.
Fear
Growing Over A Sharp Climate Shift
2002
Farm Bill Contains Billions for Conservation
The House Agriculture Committee has released its “concept paper” on the 2002 Farm Bill. Of the $73.5 billion bill, $15 billion is dedicated to conservation over the ten-year period, a 75% increase over current levels. Some of the highlights:
The Wetland Reserve Program acreage cap doubles to 2.075 million acres; farmers restore land to wetlands and protect it with easements.
The Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program to be funded at $25 million per year for ten years. Provides cost sharing for habitat.
The Farmland Protection Program; $50 million a year for ten years. It helps government agencies and non-profit groups acquire conservation easements and development rights from farmers.
Critics say the
bill doesn’t go far enough; the National Farm Union wants conservation
spending increased more than three times current amounts and the
American Farmland Trust says “three-quarters of Americans think that
federal farm payment should come with some conservation requirement on
the part of the farmer.”
USDA: Conservation
contentious in sketch of new Farm Bill